Travel Alerts

Ohio State is actively monitoring the developments in Istanbul, Turkey following the attacks at the Istanbul Ataturk Airport. The university has three graduate students with approved research plans in Turkey this summer. All travelers have been accounted for. Two are currently outside of Turkey for research and the third has checked-in at their research site well away from Istanbul.

In March, the International Travel Policy Committee (ITPC) suspended undergraduate programming in Turkey. The suspension remains in place and all graduate student travel plans to Turkey must be reviewed by the ITPC and authorized by the provost.

Thursday, June 2, 2016 - The U.S. Department of State has updated the current Travel Alert for Europe. Alerts are issued for short-term events the U.S. Department of State believes travelers should be aware of when planning to visit a specific country or region of the world. In this most recent alert, the Department of State has not advised individuals to defer travel, but cautions travelers to remain vigilant when in public areas and using mass transit. An alert contrasts with a "warning," which is also issued by the Department of State, and signals that travelers should consider very carefully whether or not they should travel at all to a specific country. The current Alert is an update from the previous Alert issued on March 23, 2016 and remains in effect through August 31, 2016.

The most notable update in the current Alert is the specific mention of three large public events being hosted in France and Poland:

The European Soccer Championship being held in multiple cities across France from June 10 – July 10.

The Tour de France cycling race which will be held from July 2- July 24.

The Catholic Church’s World Youth Day being held in to Krakow, Poland, from July 26 - July 31.

It is important to note that while these specific examples are cited, the advice in the Alert and considerations below extends to all large events.

At this time there are no plans to cancel or suspend Ohio State study abroad programs in Europe. Ohio State has sent information concerning the alert and additional safety planning guidelines to all students currently studying in Europe.